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| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION |
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| INTRODUCED BY CALTAGIRONE, BRENNAN, COHEN, D. COSTA, CUTLER, FABRIZIO, KORTZ, KOTIK, MILNE, MURT, READSHAW AND REICHLEY, APRIL 27, 2011 |
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| REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, APRIL 27, 2011 |
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| A RESOLUTION |
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1 | Directing the Joint State Government Commission to study and |
2 | make recommendations to the General Assembly on the practice |
3 | of administrative law before the Commonwealth's hearing |
4 | boards. |
5 | WHEREAS, Several departments and independent agencies of the |
6 | Commonwealth engage in adjudicatory review of actions which the |
7 | department, independent agency or the public initiate in order |
8 | to further the department's purposes; and |
9 | WHEREAS, Although Title 2 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated |
10 | Statutes provides for a uniform system of adjudicatory review, |
11 | it does not provide for efficiency in hiring and training of |
12 | hearing officers and administrative law judges, nor does it |
13 | provide for uniform docketing procedures and centralized |
14 | publication of adjudicatory decisions; and |
15 | WHEREAS, The legislative and executive branches of government |
16 | in the Commonwealth engage in investigating cost-cutting |
17 | measures in order to create balanced and fair budgets; and |
18 | WHEREAS, Streamlining the adjudicatory practice of |
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1 | administrative law could be a means to cut costs for future |
2 | budgets and help shape a balanced budget; therefore be it |
3 | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives direct the Joint |
4 | State Government Commission to study and make recommendations to |
5 | the General Assembly on the practice of administrative law |
6 | within the Commonwealth; and be it further |
7 | RESOLVED, In conducting this study, the Joint State |
8 | Government Commission is urged to identify areas for improvement |
9 | and reform, including, but not limited to, the following: |
10 | (1) Identification of uniform professional |
11 | qualifications and standards of hearing officers and |
12 | administrative law judges. |
13 | (2) Identification of a centralized system for selection |
14 | and oversight of all hearing officers and administrative law |
15 | judges. |
16 | (3) Identification of need and assignment of |
17 | responsibility based on subject matter specificity. |
18 | (4) Separation of advocacy and adjudicatory roles within |
19 | each agency. |
20 | (5) Determination of the need to create a uniform and |
21 | understandable docketing system. |
22 | (6) Identification of a centralized publicly accessible |
23 | system to improve access to decisions and opinions. |
24 | (7) The need for consistent use of the rules of |
25 | evidence. |
26 | (8) Identification of possible cost savings by |
27 | eliminating duplication and redundancy and by enhancing |
28 | ability to use resources to meet current needs; |
29 | and be it further |
30 | RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission file its |
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1 | report with the State Government Committee of the House of |
2 | Representatives no later than nine months after the passage of |
3 | this resolution. |
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